


Cracking Up

by SmolDargon



Series: Adventures in Anatomy [4]
Category: Undertale (Video Game)
Genre: Discussion of mental illness, Gen, Post-Undertale Pacifist Route, Souls
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-29
Updated: 2021-01-29
Packaged: 2021-03-18 13:20:49
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,235
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29983455
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SmolDargon/pseuds/SmolDargon
Summary: Trauma affects everyone differently, but comfort is universal.
Series: Adventures in Anatomy [4]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2205429
Comments: 3
Kudos: 3





	Cracking Up

**Author's Note:**

> BIGTIME TRIGGER WARNING:  
> So, this one hits close to home for yours truly. It was hard to write and it's hard to post. There are mentions of death, abuse, bullying, rioting, and dark thoughts in this fic. It is not intended to be an easy read. 
> 
> As an aside, this version of Papyrus is based heavily on the events of "Flowey is Not a Good Life Coach" by unrestedjade, and the storyline as a whole basically picks up where this fic left off. Spoilers for the fic are in this oneshot. This oneshot is not necessary to understand the rest of the series, though it does explain some things seen in later works. Wingdings is mentioned here, and while I have a whole world-building explanation for it, I haven't put it in writing yet. I assure you, there is a reason for his presence. I also describe him as Sans and Pap's older brother rather than father or creator.
> 
> I am new to AO3, so please let me know if I need to change tags or if there is a proper way to cite or tag things based on another person's work.

It had been a horrible day. The human had been harassed by yet another customer at work, and carried the bulk of her department's work by herself. It wasn't entirely their fault; two of the seven had called in sick, and the others had simply gotten sloppy with their work, leaving her to not only do her own job, but fix their mistakes as well. She had been struggling in the first place. Depression and dissociative episodes had a nasty habit of showing up unannounced and uninvited. One of the customers had shared her abuser's name and drove the same type of vehicle. She'd had to push past it in the moment to keep working, but she was secretly upset and unnerved. Now that she was home, alone and undisturbed, she could finally fall apart. Memories came to the forefront unbidden, reminding her of days spent in anguish. It didn't help that none of her family truly believed any abuse had taken place. There was a reason she had moved so far away. She had hoped to start over with her boyfriend, living halfway across the country and miles away from the pain. It had gone fairly well at first; she was healing, learning to trust and love again. But that all changed when he was killed during one of the major protests. She had seen so much death in her life already, but this death absolutely broke her. And now, not for the first time since, she was falling to pieces again. In a rare victory, she decided against going out drinking. Instead, she put on old movies, ordered a pizza, and replayed the saddest parts of her past. It was hard to bring such emotions to the surface; after all, her new monster friends hated to see her unhappy, and she could be downright unpleasant at work if she allowed her feelings to take over. But she was alone now, safe in her home, and nobody could judge her. The pain in her chest came freely this time, and she sobbed openly, not really caring what her cats had to say about the situation. In the end, they said nothing, only jumped onto the couch with her, leaning in as if their presence could lift her sorrows. Still, the human cried.

\--‐-------------‐----------------------------------

Across town, a similar scene unfolded in the Gaster brothers' house. Sans had long since gone to bed, and Wingdings typically stayed in his workshop late into the night. Despite his exhaustion, Papyrus simply couldn't get to sleep. He didn't sleep much to begin with, but now he was truly suffering for it. He had tried everything to get his mind to quiet, but nothing seemed able to banish those horrible memories of vines and thorns and the smell of dust on the wind. He had taken to pacing, his anxiety slowly spiraling out of control. Maybe if he just let himself panic, it would wear him out enough that he could finally sleep. The thought was unpleasant, but he was running out of options. He no longer felt close to his brothers. That stupid little flower had driven a wedge between Papyrus and Sans, and the rift it created had yet to fully heal. On top of that, Wingdings had been lost to the void for so long, he barely felt like a brother anymore. Besides, none of this was their fault. It wasn't fair to lean so heavily on them. He was sure they had their own problems to deal with, anyway. So, Papyrus continued to suffer in silence, putting on his most cheerful façade during the day, and only allowing himself to truly come undone in the privacy of his room. He had been doing so much better on the surface. He had friends now, and they all cared about him. He had a job in a field he loved, and was doing well in every other aspect of his life. So why couldn't he just move on and forget about the past?

He was startled out of his thoughts by the sound of his phone chiming. He considered ignoring it; nobody ever texted him anything important this late at night. But then again, anything was a welcome distraction at this point. The screen showed a text from the human. That was unusual. Normally she called, knowing the small text on his phone was difficult for him to read properly.

The Human: Hey, Paps. Sorry to bother you so late. I just got off work and was wondering if you were still interested in watching that old movie with me. I can't sleep, anyway.

Well, this was a conundrum. He didn't particularly want to be seen in his condition, but the thought of a distraction was tempting. He paused for a moment, sitting on the bed. It was prudent to Check first. A deep breath in, hands to his ribcage, and with the exhale, he allowed his soul to float free. It looked about the same as it always had. There were scars on it; reminders of the things he had survived and gotten past. But there was still a large crack nearly bisecting it down the middle. Today it looked particularly bad. The edges were so dull, they almost looked as if they would crumble if touched. He noted that there was a glowing spiderweb network by the crack, however. This was a sure sign of recovery. He could do this. He just had to keep holding on. If not for himself, for his friends and family. A distraction might be just what he needed. He let his soul sink back into its place under his ribs, safe once again, and headed downstairs to retrieve his keys. It was only a short drive to the human's house, but he still felt the dizzying grip of panic in his soul. He did something he normally didn't. He shortcutted, opening his front door into the human's living room.

\-------------------------------------------------------

The human had cried for the better part of an hour before she was finally spent. The comforting numbness began to set in again, forcing distance between her and her pain. She wasn't going to argue; everything hurt. She wondered if it were still worth the effort to put on that movie. Maybe it would be good to have a friendly face around. Her friends were always saying they wanted to help, perhaps it was time she called that favor in. Or called their bluff. She still didn't really think anyone would actually show up just for her. She texted Papyrus anyway. She felt slightly bad about making him read the small letters, but she didn't feel up to calling. Hopefully he would understand. If nothing else, he could help her eat that pizza.

She had just set the box and two-liter bottle on the coffee table when she heard a noise. Before she could fully process what could have made the sound, Papyrus appeared in the room, just inside the door. He looked a little worse for the wear, and she wondered if he had been sleeping after all when she texted him. She hadn't even considered he might share Sans's ability to "shortcut".

"OH DEAR, THAT WAS A ROUGHER LANDING THAN I EXPECTED...HELLO, HUMAN."

Papyrus did not sound like himself at all. He sounded exhausted, as if all his usual energy had simply evaporated into the night. He didn't even bother holding himself fully upright, choosing instead to lean on the wall. The human wondered if shortcutting was simply that tiring, and if so, why he had not chosen to drive instead.

"Hey, Paps. Wasn't expecting you so quickly."

He was quite tired, but still very observant. It was immediately obvious to him that the human was also having a rough night. She looked like she might have been crying, and she hadn't even bothered to take her hair out of the braid she had worn to work. He could feel the distress in her soul mirroring the pain in his own. Something was very wrong here, and she had apparently been willing to hide it.

"Let me get us some plates…I know greasy foods aren't really your thing, but you're welcome to some pizza. You want silverware?"

Papyrus just nodded, flopping unceremoniously onto the unoccupied end of the couch. He was still anxious, but he no longer had the energy to do anything else about it. Shortcutting was still new to him, and it took more magic than he normally liked to expend at once. He was amazed he'd actually managed to land precisely where he intended.

The human returned quickly with cups, plates, and a fork and knife for Papyrus, setting everything onto the coffee table. She flopped down at the other end of the couch and heaved a sigh before reaching for the controller. She turned on her TV and console, pulling up a streaming service and selected an older movie entitled, "Robots". She had mentioned it before, and cited it as "comfort food for the brain". Apparently, it was one of her childhood favorites. Once the movie got started, she cracked open the soda, pouring some for them both, while Papyrus used the utensils to set a couple slices of pizza on each of their plates. She was right, he really didn't care for grease. But it seemed such a small thing to get worked up over when he had been through so much actual pain.

She finally looked over and asked, "Did I wake you up? You seem kinda out of it."

"I'M FINE, HUMAN", he replied flatly.

"That's….not really what I asked. But I understand if you don't want to talk about it."

Only then did Papyrus realize she hadn't been prying for details on his mental state, only making sure she hadn't disturbed his sleep. _God, am I really that bad off that I feel the need to defend myself from a friend?_

He apologized, and assured her that no, he hadn't been sleeping, and gave the excuse of shortcutting being more exhausting than he realized. She seemed satisfied with his answer, but he could still feel that she was worried about him.

The human was grateful for the skeleton's company, even if he seemed less energetic than usual. But she couldn't shake the feeling that there was something he wasn't telling her. He seemed withdrawn, as if even socializing was too much effort. The way he seemed to zone out occasionally made her wonder if he, too, knew what it was to be so numb that even pain couldn’t break through. She also noticed that he hadn't even bothered to put on regular clothes. While she didn't mind him hanging out in his pajamas, it was very unlike him. He insisted that social calls required proper pants as a bare minimum, regardless of the hour.

Papyrus was doing his best to immerse himself in the movie, the better to forget the pain he'd been feeling only a short while earlier. So far, it seemed to be working. It helped that the movie was fairly entertaining. The anxiety and pain had finally given way to apathy, and he threw himself into it, grateful to finally feel nothing at all.

"Papyrus."

He was caught off guard. She didn't often use his full name. She looked concerned, and he cursed inwardly, wondering what she had picked up on that gave away his true emotional state.

She took a deep breath before asking, "Have you ever wanted to just not feel anything anymore? Like…happiness is out of reach, so you stop trying to go for it, and settle for feeling numb instead?"

She didn't hold his gaze once she had his attention. She was asking for herself, not for him. But the truth of the matter was _he knew exactly what she was talking about_. He was experiencing that very thing right then. And if she was asking, and expressing it with such detail, he realized she probably felt that way too. _That's why she wanted me to come over. She finally decided to reach out for help after all this time._

As if on cue, he felt her soul crying out in pain. She had quieted it earlier, but it seemed she was no longer able to keep herself from hurting. Emotions were not things that could be easily ignored. He couldn't help but wonder what had happened to her that made her hurt so badly. He had his theories; she was so guarded and jumpy even at the best of times, he wondered if she had been hurt the way he had. _She probably knows what it means to feel powerless._

He sighed heavily, setting down his empty plate. He knew what he wanted to say. He desperately wanted help, and he knew that she was probably the best person to turn to. She was the only person he knew who hurt the way he did. But he was also afraid. She was afraid, too, he could feel that clearly. Sometimes he cursed his skeletal body and its sensitivity to the suffering of others. But tonight, he was grateful for the knowledge that someone else might know and understand his suffering. He was tired of fighting it alone.

"HUMAN…. I KNOW EXACTLY WHAT YOU MEAN."

"I was afraid of that…"

_Of course she sees right through my façade. She wears the same mask I do. She knows the signs._

She drew in on herself, a habit born from having to comfort herself in times of crisis.

"Whatever happened to you, it's not your fault."

Her words struck deeper than he expected, and he felt his own soul hurt again. He wanted to believe her, but he wasn't sure he could just yet. Maybe someday.

"AND WHATEVER HAPPENED TO YOU WASN'T YOUR FAULT EITHER."

His voice was quieter than usual, and it took all his willpower not to choke up over it. She let out a shaky breath, and he could see tears welling up in her eyes.

"WHAT…WHAT DO HUMANS DO WHEN THEIR SOULS GET HURT SO BADLY?"

He hoped that he could distract her from the worst of the pain, while also helping her work through the immediate issue. She liked explaining things, perhaps it would help her sort it out.

"Well….not much, to be honest. It depends on a number of things. Humans have these things called 'mental illnesses', and that is what I'm dealing with. Some people have physiological malfunctions in their brains and need medicine to help counter them. Others have bad experiences and have to retrain their brains to function properly again. Some people have a little of both."

"WHICH IS IT FOR YOU?"

"I have a little of both. I probably would have grown up just fine in the right environment, but…my folks weren't the best to me. Neither were my peers or other authority figures, but my family was the worst."

The idea was unthinkable for Papyrus. He couldn't imagine Sans or 'Dings ever not being there for him. Granted, he didn't like to lean on them, but he knew if he asked, they would help. How could someone not support their own?

"To have a messed up childhood is to ruin a person for their whole life. There are so many things I simply cannot comprehend. You remember when I tried to make that pie in Asgore's house, and I burned it real bad?"

Papyrus nodded. He remember it vividly. The thing had looked like a charcoal disc and turned out completely inedible. The human had been very upset about it, and for good reason; she had spent a great deal of time on it, even making the crust from scratch.

"And he wasn't even angry. He didn't care that I'd nearly set the kitchen on fire or that my pie was totally ruined. He literally only cared that I'd managed to burn my hand on the oven. He just…healed it and hugged me. And I didn't know what to do, I was so prepared for him to yell at me and throw me out and tell me never to come back."

"HE WOULD NEVER! KING FLUFFYBUNS IS ONE OF THE KINDEST, GENTLEST PEOPLE I KNOW, HE'S NOT GOING TO YELL OVER A PIE! IT WASN'T EVEN YOUR FAULT, THE TIMER JUST BROKE AND WE ALL FORGOT ABOUT IT FOR A WHILE!"

"I know it wasn't my fault, but… I don't understand why he didn't get upset. Every time I screwed something up as a kid, my mom's husband would yell at me and make me feel really bad about it, even if it _wasn't_ my fault. Sometimes he hit me because of it."

Papyrus was shocked. Such a thing was unheard of in the monster community. Parents might discipline their children, certainly, but it was a high crime to be so cruel. There were documented cases from before the war of children dusting overnight due to parental abuse or neglect. It was hardwired into monster society: treat your children well. They had a hard time understanding why child abuse was allowed to exist in human society.

"DID NO ONE HELP YOU? YOUR MOTHER? FRIENDS? SCHOOLTEACHERS?"

A look of rage came over her face and she turned animated, angrily gesturing as she explained.

"My mom was basically absent once I turned four, her husband was horrible, my siblings blamed things on me knowing he wouldn't question it and they could get off scot-free, teachers refused to help and even _made me feel worse about it_ , classmates were horrible people for no good reason, the rest of my family refused to call child protective services on him, I prayed and pleaded and _screamed_ for whatever god there might be…"

Her empty stare sent chills down his spine.

" _B u t n o b o d y c a m e._ "

She let the statement hang in the air for a moment, gathering her strength to continue.

"That's not even the worst thing that happened to me. I've been emotionally and mentally on my own since the day I was born."

Papyrus was speechless. So many opportunities for people to help, and yet she had still been forced to go it alone. At least he'd had his brothers and his friends to lean on. The human had absolutely nobody. She looked so small in that moment. Granted, she was a short woman to begin with, but she moved and held herself like she was ready to jump up and kick life in the teeth. Now, she just looked….fragile.

"I'd say I hope you had it better than me, but….you act like you had it just as bad if not worse."

He sighed. He didn't really want to talk about his past, but considering she had basically just dumped her entire life story on him, he almost felt obligated. Maybe he could just give a broad explanation. He took a deep breath, steeling his nonexistent nerves.

"WELL…YOU ARE NOT WRONG, UNFORTUNATELY. I WAS HAVING A NICE LIFE. TRAINING WITH UNDYNE, MAINTAINING MY PUZZLES, YELLING AT SANS TO PICK UP HIS SOCK… I HAD A FRIEND. BUT ONE DAY, HE JUST… STARTED FIGHTING ME. SPARRING IS ONE THING, BUT THIS WAS…. HE TOLD ME TO FIGHT LIKE MY LIFE DEPENDED ON IT. HE STALKED ME EVERYWHERE, HE MADE ME COME BACK FOR MORE 'PRACTICE', AND HE THREATENED TO HURT EVERYONE I CARED ABOUT. HE WANTED TO PUSH ME TO KILL SOMEONE. I WAS ABLE TO SAVE THE FIRST ONE HE SET ME ON. THE SECOND…. HE KILLED THEM IN FRONT OF ME."

It was the human's turn to be speechless. She hadn't expected such darkness from Papyrus of all people. He was silent for a moment, and she took the opportunity to move close enough to set a hand on his shoulder. He jumped at the sudden touch, but then gently set her hand back on his shoulder. She made a mental note not to startle him in the future.

"HE TRIED TO MAKE ME KILL SANS. IN THE END, SANS, UNDYNE, AND I ALL ENDED UP FIGHTING HIM AND I…..", he sucked in a breath before continuing, "I KILLED HIM. I KILLED SOMEONE, HUMAN…"

He fell apart. All he could see was the dust on his hands. The human didn't know what to say. This was a man she had believed was completely incapable of actual violence, yet here he had basically confessed to killing in self-defense. His distress was so great that his soul popped out of his ribcage, startling the human into backing off.

"Oh, god, Paps. What the hell is that?"

She had never seen anything like this. It looked like an inverted heart, the point of it sticking up. It glowed a soft white, except for a section near the middle. Her breath caught at the sight of the massive crack down the middle. Part of her wanted to reach out to calm him, but she knew souls were an intimate part of monster culture, and she didn't want to risk offending Papyrus or hurting him further.

Papyrus did his best to calm himself, knowing it was the only way to get his soul back where it belonged. Deep breaths were difficult at first, but came more easily the longer he tried. Finally, he was able to gently guide his soul back into his chest, where it settled. He couldn't bring himself to look at the human's face. He didn't want her pity.

"Paps? Are you alright?"

"I WILL BE FINE, HUMAN… AND THAT… THAT WAS MY SOUL."

She huffed quietly, speaking in a soft, awestruck voice, "You must be really strong to have so much damage and still keep going."

"THEY AREN'T SUPPOSED TO LOOK SO BAD…", he said quietly, choking back tears. "IT MAKES ME WORRY HOW BAD YOURS LOOKS."

The human nodded thoughtfully. After seeing the physical damage to a soul, she realized it was entirely possible for hers to be damaged also. She also knew that Papyrus was a skilled healer; for him to still have such damage must have meant there were mechanics to soul damage that she didn't understand.

"At the risk of being too forward, would you like to take a look at it?"

There was a weighty silence between them for a long moment. Papyrus wondered if she realized the implications of what she had just asked. That was something normally reserved for the closest of friends, or sometimes for family. Rarely, for a doctor. It was the deepest expression of trust. And since she was a human, she couldn't just make her soul manifest like he could. Which meant she would also have to trust him to coax it into view.

"HUMAN… DO YOU REALIZE WHAT YOU'RE OFFERING? AND WHAT YOU'RE ASKING OF ME?"

"I know it's a gesture of trust. And… I'm tired of keeping everyone out. I want to be able to trust someone again. I can't think of anyone better than you."

He gave her a look of utter shock.

"YOU CAN'T THINK OF ANYONE BETTER…THAN A COLD-BLOODED MURDERER? I KNOW YOU CAN'T FEEL THE LV IN MY SOUL, BUT IT'S THERE. I HAVE THE CAPACITY TO BE VIOLENT, AND YOU STILL CAN'T THINK OF ANYONE BETTER? YOU COULD HAVE ASKED TORIEL OR SANS OR ALPHYS… WHY ME?"

She smiled gently, placing a hand back on his shoulder.

"You're not a murderer. You've had to make hard decisions in your life, sure. But that doesn't make you less trustworthy. The fact that you willingly admitted it to me instead of trying to hide or sugarcoat it means the world. I haven't asked anyone else because I don't trust anyone else. Toriel abandoned her kingdom because of a petty squabble over morality. Sans doesn't make the effort to trust me, so I don't put much into trusting him. And Alphys is known to keep secrets. I may not have the ability to sense Lv the way you can, but I can feel the darkness in her heart. She holds herself like a woman possessed with guilt. I don't know what for, and I don't really care to know. But you? You have been through hell and back. You could just as easily have chosen to be a cold, hard-hearted bastard. But you didn't. Every day, you choose kindness. Even when it would be easier to push someone back or let them fall, you choose kindness. That… takes a lot of strength. I can't do that. I just don't have it in me. I'm sorry you were put in a position where you had to kill someone. That wasn't fair. You didn't deserve it. But by god, you have more than proven your own resilience. You're no murderer, Paps. Just a really strong, caring man put in an unfortunate position."

The skeleton was at a loss for words. He could feel that she meant every word. If she believed in him that much… who was he to try and convince her otherwise? He took a few deep breaths, preparing to give her what she asked for, and to satisfy his own morbid curiosity.

"HUMAN… THIS MAY FEEL A LITTLE STRANGE. I ASSURE YOU IT WILL NOT HURT. TRY TO TAKE SLOW, DEEP BREATHS. THE STRANGENESS WILL PASS."

She nodded, steeling herself. Papyrus turned her soul blue, gently tugging it out of its place. Human souls were big and strong, he knew, but hers was on a whole other level. "Gently" was a bit of a misnomer; it took a fair bit of pulling to extract it. Several minutes of effort and deep breathing later, her soul finally came fully into view.

He wasn't surprised that it was red. After what she had told him, it seemed only right that she had a Determination soul. What worried him were the cracks. She had a large crack in one lobe, similar to the large one in the middle of his own, but she also had numerous places around the edges where smaller cracks snaked their way inwards. The smaller cracks showed signs of healing; several of them had clearly been much larger at some point. The largest crack, however, showed signs of deterioration. The edges were dull and grey, and her soul in its entirety didn't have the bright red glow he expected. It looked dim, as if it were tired of holding itself together. He had to admit, it looked a great deal worse than he thought it would. It seemed years of abuse and neglect would do that to a person. Most of her wounds were old. He suspected she'd carried them for the better part of her life. It made him sick to think someone could inflict such pain on a child, especially their own.

The human seemed afraid to see the damage for herself. She looked stricken, reaching a hand out to cup her soul gently. This was the culmination of her being, and it looked every bit as ragged as she had expected. No wonder it was so hard to heal; this was the result of years of damage.

She chuckled nervously, holding back tears, "It… looks better than I thought it would."

Papyrus couldn't hold such a large soul out of place forever, but he needed her to see what he could.

"HUMAN. DO YOU SEE THESE SMALLER CRACKS? SEE HOW THEY LOOK LIKE THEY WERE LARGER BEFORE?"

She nodded quietly.

"THAT IS HEALING. IT USED TO BE MUCH WORSE. EVEN THIS BIG ONE… LOOK, IT HAS A LITTLE RED GLOWING NETWORK IN IT. LIKE THOSE BLOOD VESSELS YOU WERE TELLING ME ABOUT. IT IS TRYING TO HEAL HERE, TOO."

He let her soul sink back into her chest. It was too big to keep out any longer. She seemed relieved; it was a vulnerable position to be in. She hadn't realized until then how easy it would have been for him to have hurt her. _But he didn't_ , she realized. It seemed her trust had been well-placed.

Papyrus recovered quickly from the effort, both pleased that it had gone so well and deeply unsettled with the amount of damage present in her soul. It all made sense now. She didn't ask for help because she didn't know how to. She had spent so much time alone, begging for help and receiving none, that she had simply forgotten how to request assistance. It was a worthless skill to have under her past circumstances. He understood that, at least to a point. It had been meaningless for him to ask for help at one time, as well. Had he tried, he likely would have gotten someone else killed.

 _But_ , he reasoned, _now there's no reason we can't help each other. Nobody else understands me the way she does now, and I'd hazard a guess that she feels the same._

She reached for more pizza, offering him another slice as well. He accepted gratefully, glad that both of them had been able to help each other in some small way. They ended up having to rewind the movie to the last part they had been paying attention. By the end of it, they pizza and soda were gone, and they were curled up together under a heavy blanket, the tabby cat on Papyrus's chest and the white cat next to her owner on the couch. Humans would have seen it as a nice, romantic evening, but both this human and the monster community as a whole had a more open view on physical contact. Monsters in general were far more hands-on than humans from a cultural standpoint. It had taken some getting used to on the human's part, but she seemed glad for the touch. After hearing her story, it made sense. She probably hadn't gotten much physical affection from her parents. Papyrus was also grateful to be able to actually sit and cuddle with someone. It didn't hurt that humans were naturally warm. Flesh was much softer and more comfortable to lean on than bone.

They ended up watching another old movie and staying up later than either of them really intended. She had offered to let him spend the night since it was so late and he didn't bring his car, an offer he graciously accepted. He'd expected to be relegated to the couch, but she invited him to her bedroom instead. He sent a text to Wingdings, figuring he would still be up. It wouldn't do to have his brothers wake up tomorrow and wonder where he was. Especially after his incident underground, Sans worried if he couldn't find Papyrus anywhere.

They settled into the bed, the cats following and laying close to them both. Papyrus thought it was nice that they considered him a part of things. At first, he was content to lay with his back against the human's, but he ended up rolling over to be the big spoon. She surprised him by nestling closer to his chest. It seemed she wanted the contact as well. The night had gone better than either of them expected. They both knew that it would be business as usual in the public eye, but it was helpful to know that they had someone to reach out to if their collective soul damage got too heavy to bear alone.

**Author's Note:**

> Please be gentle in your criticisms of this piece. Aside from the riot participation and death of a significant other, EVERYTHING the human has experienced is accurate to yours truly. 
> 
> I want to make it clear, especially given the state of the world when I wrote this, that I DO NOT claim to understand the pain of real-life protestors. I only reference it in terms of world-building, knowing humans fear change, and would fight monster integration to the bitter end. There is a reason this part was excluded from the human and Pap's conversation; I don't have the real world experience necessary to discuss that. It isn't my place. Thank you for your understanding, and thank you for your kindness in reading this piece.


End file.
